Rabbi Shmuley Boteach wrote the following article.  I’m interested in hearing your feedback.  Are cowardly rabbis responsible for Jews treating Judaism with disregard?  Should rabbis be more outspoken even at the risk of alienating their members or students? Please comment below.  –RED

We’ve become bland by refusing to be opinionated; we should understand that people ‘want’ to hear something compelling, whether they agree with it or not.

Few columns I have written have generated as much heat and as many responses as the last two about rabbis. The first dealt with the failures of the British Chief Rabbinate in curbing the sewer of anti- Semitism that has erupted in Britain, especially on campuses. The second addressed the growing irrelevance of the American rabbinate to mainstream Jewish and American life. Few rabbis have any impact on wider American culture, and even within the Jewish community, it’s mostly secular writers and lay leaders who are determining the future.

In my column I maintained that we rabbis are becoming nice guys, popular among our flocks specifically because we refrain from dishing out discomfort. The modern rabbi is your tennis partner and drinking buddy, but never the guy who criticizes your lavish bar mitzva. The rabbi rarely makes himself unpopular with the board by taking controversial stands, like insisting that all weddings he performs be kosher-catered. The net result is that rabbis have been declawed, which accounts for why at major communal conventions like AIPAC or the federations’ General Assembly, rabbis are reduced to such niceties as a monotonous invocation or the grace after meals.

Rabbi-as-nice-guy also means allowing yourself to be treated derisively, and I shared how, although the American Jewish University website boasts that it was given $33 million for adult education, it offered me a fraction of what I later learned it was paying two atheist speakers for a debate on the afterlife that I had proposed, and which I had earlier staged with Christopher Hitchens in New York in front of 800 people.

I regularly accommodate organizations with no funding, but I objected to this insulting double standard on principle, even as the AJU moved to cut me from the event.

RESPONDING TO my argument that rabbis have been neutered, Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, a lion of our local community, agreed in part, but said my Hollywood associations risked the same trivialization of the rabbinate that I decry.

His words have merit. I have yet to fully become the man or rabbi I wish to be. But I know who that man is – an exponent of Judaism who brings the glory of our tradition to Jewish and non-Jewish audiences wherever they may be. I have one overriding desire: to make Judaism relevant. And I live with endless frustration at how the world’s first monotheistic faith seems to take a permanent backseat to Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and secular humanism. We rabbis are guilty of allowing what is arguably the world’s foremost repository of wisdom to be confined to .003% of the earth’s population.

There is a spiritual thirst in America, just not for Judaism. There are Jew-Boos (Jewish Buddhists), Jews who practice yoga and meditation, Jews who study Kabbala, and millions of Jewish women who watch Oprah to quench their spiritual thirst. They just don’t come to synagogue. I believe the principal reason is that rabbis have become bland by refusing to be opinionated. We fear balkanizing our audience.

But people want to hear something compelling, whether they agree with it or not. CNN is being destroyed in the ratings because, unlike Fox and now even MSNBC, it will not take a stand. Sarah Palin is relevant because she is unafraid to speak her mind. Vastly talented hosts such as Anderson Cooper have seen their audiences shrivel because of their neutrality, and his producers are now encouraging him to get in the face of his interviewees.

BUT SOME in the Jewish community still believe that rabbis must win popularity contests. A case in point was the response to my criticism of British Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks by Saul Taylor (“A tough act to follow” January 4), who apparently believes that the staggering anti-Semitism and Israel-bashing that has erupted under Sacks’s leadership is irrelevant because “his recent appointment to the House of Lords is an indication of the high esteem in which he is held.”

Indeed, he added, “the whole community joined to congratulate him on joining the House of Lords.”

He was seemingly blind to how his bizarre “defense” condemned the chief rabbi to being a perfect caricature of the toadying court Jew who will allow himself to be muzzled to placate his non-Jewish overlords. Taylor put the nail in coffin of the chief rabbi’s reputation by saying: “We were very proud when it was our chief rabbi who was chosen to address Pope Benedict during his recent trip to the UK.”

Ah, non-Jewish acceptance at last.

Is Taylor right, that British Jews are so enamored of vacuous titles – polls show that a majority of Britons would like to see the stodgy House of Lords abolished – and empty pomp that they would applaud a oncecourageous rabbinic institution falling silent even as the Jewish state has become more reviled in the UK than North Korea? Taylor’s fixation with non-Jewish legitimacy conjures images of past Israeli prime ministers glowingly raising the Nobel Prize in Oslo for the “peace” they achieved amid the din of thousands of Israelis being blown up by suicide bombers.

But Taylor is not done yet. Sacks has been a paragon of moral courage because he “welcomes [homosexuals] at [British] synagogues.”

Oh, yes. Valor indeed.

How tragic for our community when leaders become heroes for simply welcoming equal sons and daughters of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob back to their rightful home.

We all like to be loved. We all desire to be admired. I myself am no stranger to the inner demons that draw one to the limelight. But we rabbis must resist the urge for mainstream approval and promote the interests of our people, at whatever price. We rabbis must serve as lights unto the nations, whatever the cost.

The writer is founder of This World: The Values Network, which promotes universal Jewish values in the mainstream culture. He was the 2000 Times of London Preacher of the Year. www.shmuley.com

Here’s the question…

It is well-known that we celebrate Chanukah for 8 days because it was a miracle that one day’s worth of oil lasted for eight days.  BUT, if there was already one day’s worth of oil, then it would seem that the miracle lasted for only seven days.  If that’s true, then the holiday commemoration should also be seven days long.

So the question is, Why is Chanukah celebrated for eight days rather than seven?

Good question, right?  I’ll bet that one never came up in your Hebrew school class.

To respond, click on Comments below.  They will appear shortly after posting.  If you prefer to keep your response private, send it by email to  ChanukahQ@DoJewish.org.

The winner will be announced on Thursday December 9th, the eighth day of Chanukah.  Happy pondering!

A breakthrough in the research of the Bible has shed new light on the period in which the Bible could have been written, testifying to Hebrew writing abilities as early as the 10th century BCE, the University of Haifa announced on Thursday.

The trapezoid pottery shard discovered at excavations by Prof. Yosef Garfinkel near the Elah valley and deciphered by Prof. Gershon Galil.

Photo: Courtesy of the University of Haifa

Prof. Gershon Galil of the Department of Biblical Studies at the University of Haifa recently deciphered an inscription dating from the 10th century BCE, and showed that it was a Hebrew inscription, making it the earliest known Hebrew writing.

This breakthrough indicates that at least some of the scriptures were composed hundreds of years before the dates previously believed, and that the Kingdom of Israel already existed at that time. The 10th century BCE was the period of King David’s reign.

The inscription itself, which was written in ink on a 15 cm X 16.5 cm trapezoid pottery shard, was discovered a year and a half ago at excavations that were carried out by Prof. Yosef Garfinkel at Khirbet Qeiyafa near the Elah Valley.

Though it was dated to the 10th century BCE, it was not immediately clear whether it was written in Hebrew or another local language.

Prof. Galil’s deciphering of the ancient writing testifies to its being Hebrew, based on the use of verbs particular to the Hebrew language, and content specific to Hebrew culture and not adopted by any other cultures in the region.

“This text is a social statement, relating to slaves, widows and orphans,” Prof. Galil explained. “It uses verbs that were characteristic of Hebrew, such as asa (“did”) and avad (“worked”), which were rarely used in other regional languages. Particular words that appear in the text, such as almana (“widow”) are specific to Hebrew and are written differently in other local languages.”

The deciphered text:

1 you shall not do [it], but worship the [Lord].

2 Judge the sla[ve] and the wid[ow] / Judge the orph[an]

3 [and] the stranger. [Pl]ead for the infant / plead for the po[or and]

4 the widow. Rehabilitate [the poor] at the hands of the king.

5 Protect the po[or and] the slave / [supp]ort the stranger.

Once this deciphering is confirmed, Prof. Galil added, the inscription will become the earliest Hebrew inscription to be found, testifying to Hebrew writing abilities as early as the 10th century BCE.

Originally published in the Jerusalem Post

Yosef, Dark and Bright

Yosef found himself an innocent man in captivity.  First as a slave to Potifar, then imprisoned in a dungeon, Yosef spent 13 years locked up.  The conditions of the dungeon could only have been as horrible as we would imagine. And he had little reason to hope that he would be freed anytime soon.

Yet with no notice Yosef was pulled from the dungeon, cleaned up and presented to the King.  In a matter of minutes, following his successful interpretation of Paroh’s dream, Yosef finds himself promoted to Viceroy of the world’s superpower.  Yosef went from darkness and despair to the light of freedom in the blink of an eye.

The Maccabees’ Fight

In contrast, the Chanukah story is one of slow and even incomplete success.  The loyalist Jews had been fighting a civil war against the Hellenist Jews as well as a vicious war against the massive Greek army.  The Maccabees were vastly outnumbered militarily and overmatched politically.  Time, it must have seemed, was not on their side.

Yet after years of battles and untold thousands of deaths, the Maccabees finally retook the Temple.  The miracle of the oil signaled that the military victory also came from God.  But the battles were far from over.  Jerusalem itself was still partially occupied by Greek forces, as were many other regions throughout Israel.  It would be three more years of fighting before the Greek military was fully evicted from our land.

Miracles Overt vs. Quiet

These are two very different ways that God helps out.  The Yosef model is sudden and unexpected.  The seeds may have been planted earlier, but the rescue came almost spontaneously – at least as far as the human eye can perceive.

The Maccabee model is one of slow struggles, putting out enormous efforts even when a successful end is not at all guaranteed.  Despite enjoying few resources, perhaps pressured by negative and discouraging voices around us, victory is eventually had – even as the challenges continue.

Either Way, Trust in God

In our own struggles, most people probably hope and pray for the Yosef model.  We’ll buy our lottery tickets – literally and figuratively – hoping that in the blink of an eye we will be pulled out of the pit of our problems.

And, in fact, that can and does happen.  There are plenty of stories of people who unexpectedly met the person of their dreams, or who got a call out of the blue with a great job offer.  When things seem to be at their most hopeless, it’s crucial to remember that God can pull us into daylight at any moment.

And when the battles to succeed are protracted, God is working behind the scenes giving us the courage to continue, perhaps just a few more resources to use and invest, maybe bringing a new friend into our circles to energize and inspire us.

In this Maccabee model we may build our success slowly and still face challenges.  Yet we can light the menorah, so to speak, that announces our confidence that our success came from God, and that without His help we could never have emerged victorious.

As we light our actual Menorahs to remind ourselves and our neighbors of the ancient victory over the Greeks, and as we read the story of Yosef in shul on Shabbat, we can put our trust in God that, one way or another, He is in our corner helping us fight our battles.

“What are you looking for?”

“I’m looking for my brothers,” replied Yosef.  “Perhaps you can tell me where they are tending the sheep.”

“They already left this area,” said the man.  “I heard them planning to go to Dothan.”

Yosef continues his journey and indeed finds his brothers.  They see him first, throw him in a pit and wind up selling him to traveling merchants who bring him to Egypt.

Why does the Torah bother to tell us that Yosef couldn’t find his brothers, then got help, then found them?  The story would have been complete without this aside.

As a result of Yosef being sold to Egypt, his entire family will ultimately move there.  As new generations arise they are enslaved, and remain so for two centuries.  Now a full nation their cries are heard by God who, with the might of 10 plagues and awe-inspiring miracles, humbles the inhumane Egypt and brings the Jews out of slavery.  Shortly thereafter God reveals Himself to the nation, gives them the Torah and the Ten Commandments, and eventually leads them into the Land of Israel.

Yosef setting out to find his brothers is the beginning of what will be the world’s most momentous sequence of events.  And they all came about because one stranger, seeing a young man wandering about, directs him on his way.

What would have happened if that man didn’t stop to speak with Yosef?  Having done his best, Yosef might have turned back home and awaited his brother’s return.  Or, what if the man hadn’t paid attention when he overhead the group of strangers speaking of their next stop?  He may have wanted to help Yosef but would have been unable.

Without this man’s help, Egypt, Sinai, Torah, Revelation and Israel may never have taken place. 

Who was this man?  While some suggest it was an angel, others read the Torah as is, understanding that it was just a man who found himself in the right place at the right time, and who changed history as a result.

On your own journeys, sometimes you are Yosef.  Sometimes you’re The Man.

As Yosef, we have tasks to accomplish, and we move toward them the best we can.  At those times when we become lost – confused, uncertain or distracted from what we otherwise know is important – we may have to rely on someone who can get us back on track.  How will we be able to put aside our egos to listen and trust another’s judgment?

As The Man, we are called upon to pay attention to opportunities, and to not underestimate the importance of what we hear, whom we meet and how we act.  How will we be able to put aside our egos to realize that someone else’s need at that moment might be greater than ours?

In both cases we understand that God works through us, just as he did with Yosef.  Neither Yosef nor The Man knew what events lay ahead.  God brought them together for just a moment, an otherwise trivial encounter, and in so doing allowed the unfolding of God’s plans for all of Israel and humanity.

Whether we realize it or not, we are changing people’s lives every day. Great, accomplished people often tell of a single individual, or a single encounter, that shaped their lives.  Simple folk tell stories like that, too.

We should not be afraid to see God’s hand working in our lives, and to have the courage to be a faithful partner, whether we are the one stumbling or offering the guiding hand.

• We make Shabbat a Jewish day rather than one of movie nights or soccer games.
• We include Jewish CD’s in our music collection. 
• We budget our money for tzedakah as well as for recreation, and perhaps in place of some luxuries.
• We seek out and take our rabbi’s advice on important issues, rather than relying on pop culture.
• We keep up with the week’s Torah reading at least as much as with the news.

Part of life growing up in Chicago was raising money on the annual Walk for Israel, at 5 or 10 cents a mile.  Here in Atlanta we get emails from friends seeking sponsorships for important events such as diabetes bike-a-thons and for the march against cancer, and last year my wife raised $1000 on a walk for autism research.

Now, I say with some embarrassment that I need to lose about 40 pounds, for all the reasons anyone would.  Second, I say with some more embarrassment that I’m a timid fundraiser, so DoJewish is always struggling to make ends meet.  So naturally I put these two things together, and here’s my strange question (you can see where I’m going with this):

1. If someone told you that he was raising money by finding sponsors for his weight lose – say, 50 cents or $1.00 a pound – with 100% of the proceeds going to tzedakah, would you sponsor?  And,
2. If you are considering losing some weight yourself, would you join the effort and seek sponsors as well, if it were organized to make it easy?

It seems to me that it’s a great win-win program.  It gives us further incentive to get into healthier shape, and it raises funds for a good cause.  But my judgment on these kinds of things is sometimes shakey, so I’m asking for your feedback and input on the two questions, and on the idea in general.

Please share your thoughts by clicking on the Leave a Comment link, and thanks very much for your help!

It’s time for Yitzchak to find a wife. And while this is no ordinary marriage – Yitzchak was well aware of the promises God made to Avraham, and that he, Yitzchak, would be continuing the world-changing mission of building the Jewish people – the Torah nevertheless goes to extraordinary lengths to illustrate the qualities and character of the woman who would become the next Matriach.

The sages, classic and contemporary, view this story as a model for what one should look for a spouse.  Here are some of the ideas that may be worth consideration for you, if you’re looking, or your children for when they are ready.

Marry Jewish.  The significance of marrying someone from your own family, so to speak, cannot be underestimated.  From spiritual, relational, psychological, social, communal and child-raising perspectives, it’s very important that a family be on the same religious page.  And especially when considering the issue of a Jewish mission in the world, the matter of marrying Jewish takes on a significance well-beyond that of individual circumstance.

Find someone pro-actively kind.  No quality better makes a marriage partner – or any kind of partner – than kindness.  We all know people who are beautiful or intelligent or charismatic or with whom we feel “chemistry.”  But as my wife always says, those things, while perhaps valuable, won’t hold your hand when life gets challenging (and it always does).  Kindness is the tell-tale sign of a high-quality individual, and the strongest indicator that their love and commitment is for real.

Look for confident idealism.  Commitment to something bigger than ourselves makes life worth living.  And when your husband or wife has that quality, it’s easy to respect and admire him or her.  The people we think of as heroes are those who articulate high values, live according to those values and are willing to stand up for them, even if they have to pay a price for it.  Being married to such a person means you are inspired every day, trusting in his integrity.

Be the kind of person you’re looking for.  Relying on looks or charm may attract people to you, but it’s hard to hang onto them without the admirable qualities of character.  Let your kindness, spiritual depth and idealism be your calling card.  Your future spouse will love you for it!

– Rabbi Efraim Davidson, 5770

As you look to buy stuff and arrange services, please consider turning first to our own Jewish community members who run small businesses. 

We have jewelry designers, Judaica sellers, candy-makers and cosmetics mavens.  Jewish travel agents are ready to help you with your vacation plans.  Jewish caterers are eager to help you plan a party.  You get the idea.  Whatever you’re looking for, there are Jewish-owned businesses to turn to.

And while you’re getting everything you need, you can feel good that you’re helping our Jewish families.  And they can feel good that their work is appreciated and that they are thought-of.

Is this tzedakah?  You bet it is, and it’s the highest form of it.  Enabling someone to make a living is the best way to give support. 

And don’t forget the ripple effects.  When we support a Jewish-owned business, that family can better afford to support a shul, send their kids to a day school, perhaps, and in general be a more proud and active member of our community. 

Please start by looking through the Jewish Business Directory and other community guides.  Taking a few extra minutes can make a huge difference for your neighbors, friends and extended family.

Thank you!

PS:  Do you know of a Jewish business you’d like to recommend?  Click below in Comments to tell our readers about them. 

And if you own business, go here to add it to the DoJewish Business Directory for free.

Avraham was in the middle of a conversation with God.  Even for Abraham, talking to God was not an everyday occurrence.  One cannot begin to imagine what it is to be in the midst of a personal divine revelation.

Yet, when three dusty strangers appear on a nearby road, Avraham breaks off his meeting with God to greet them.  He brings them into his home, serves them water, cakes and meat, and provides them with rest and other comforts before continuing on. 

Noting that Avraham interrupted his revelation with God to greet the strangers, the Sages of the Talmud declare that this shows that hospitality is greater than standing in the presence of God. 

This is an astonishing statement, which seems to downplay the significance of Divine Revelation.  After all, imagine just a governor or president speaking to you at your door.  Would you break off your conversation to bring a sandwich out to a stranger passing by?

So how could Avraham do so to God?  And how can the Sages say that hospitality is greater than the Divine Presence?

It’s not just that, as some might say, “God can take care of himself.  We have to help others.”  This is true and important, but there’s still more to it than that.

In a case like Avraham’s, one is merely standing in the presence of God.  But to be sensitive, loving and caring toward others is emulating God.  Rather than just being in God’s presence, we become closer and more attached to God. 

God certainly wants us to speak to Him through prayer.  But I believe that much more important to Him is that we act in a godly way – that is, with compassion, patience and generosity – toward our families, friends and stranger who pass through our lives.